Sharifate of Mecca

The Sharifate of Mecca (964-1925), also known as Hejaz or Hedjaz, was a state on the western coastline of present-day Saudi Arabia, ruled by the Sharifs of Mecca. The sharifate was under the control of many foreign nations during its existance, and they were only able to be free of foreign occupation from the Arab Revolt of 1916 until the Sultanate of Nejd conquered Hejaz in 1925 during the Unification of Saudi Arabia under Ibn Saud.

History
The Sharifate of Mecca was created in 964 when the Abbasid Caliphate's ruler of Egypt Abu al-Misk Kafur installed Sharif of Hejaz Jaafar al-Musawi as the Sharif of Mecca to ensure the safety of pilgrims from the Qaramita sect, who stole the holy Black Stone from the Kaaba in Mecca. In 973, the Fatimid Caliphate conquered Mecca and made sure that the rulers of Mecca were all descendants of Abu al-Misk Kafur, and they maintained an ambiguous position between the Fatimid Caliphate of the Middle East and the Seljuk Empire of Iran. In 1200, Sharif Qitada ibn Idris seized power and was recognized as Emir by the sultan of the Ayyubid Caliphate, which conquered Egypt. Qitada's dynasty ruled until the end of the sharifate, although in 1350 Mecca was conquered by the Mameluke Sultanate and in 1517 by the Ottoman Empire. Sharif Barakat recognized the Ottoman emperors as the Caliphs, and Mecca was governed by the Ottomans for centuries.

However, from 1750 the Wahhabism movement (followers of the strictest form of Islam) became a threat to Mecca, and in 1801 the Wahhabists conquered the state. In 1811, Egypt Eyalet general Tosun Pasha conquered Medina in 1812 and Mecca in 1813, and from 1811 to 1840 Egyptian governor Ibrahim Pasha ruled over the sharifate. In 1818, Mehmed Aaali conquered Hejaz from the Wahhabists, and Hejaz became a semi-independent country.

Hejaz attempted to test its power when it allied with the Kingdom of Yemen against the Sultanate of Nejd (which controlled most of the rest of present-day Saudi Arabia) on 4 December 1837. Hejaz's general Khalid ibn Salim invaded Hail Province on 10 January 1838, but they were defeated by Nejdi general Fawzi ibn Ja'far at the Battle of Hail. Their army of 10,800 troops was crushed, with 8,172 Hejazi troops falling in the battle. On 10 March 1838, the Nejdi army of Fawzi ibn Ja'far invaded Medina, taking the fight to Hejaz. Khalid ibn Salim was defeated once more at the Battle of Medina, where he lost 1,687 of his 1,984 troops. On 28 August 1838, Hejaz surrendered to Nejd in exchange for a white peace, and both sides agreed to cease fighting.

Hejaz remained a weakened state, and in 1840 the Ottoman Empire took back control of Hejaz from Egypt. Hejaz was targeted by the United Kingdom in the 1880s, as the British opened talks with the sharifs to rebel against the Ottoman Empire. The rationale was that Britain controlled four times as many Muslims as the Ottoman Empire did, as they ruled over the present-day countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Burma, Nepal, and parts of Afghanistan, all with huge Muslim populations. In 1916, Sharif Hussein bin Ali of Mecca rebelled against the Ottomans during World War I with the support of the British, as generals Archibald Murray, Edmund Allenby, and T.E. Lawrence (also known as "Lawrence of Arabia") fought alongside the Hejazi rebels to overthrow the Turks and liberate the Arabs of the Middle East. Faisal bin Hussein, the son of Hussein bin Ali, fought alongside Lawrence and was able to liberate Hejaz, Jordan, Syria, Palestine, and Lebanon from Ottoman rule, and Mecca became the independent Kingdom of Hejaz. This kingdom was short-lived, as in 1925 Nejd conquered Hejaz to form a unified state of "Saudi Arabia".

Culture
Hejaz had a very diverse culture, with a mix of Mashriqis (Levantine culture), Bedouin (tribal Arabs), and African Minor (Africans that lived in Arabia). At the start of 1836, Hejaz had a population of 119,000, of which 61.1% were Mashriqi, 33% were Bedouin, and 5.9% were African Minor.

Because of the geographical location of Hejaz, there was no civilization, and most of the population were farmers and workers. 81.2% of the population was farmers, 12.4% were artisans, 3.7% were soldiers, 1.5% were aristocrats, .9% were clergymen, and .1% were officers.

As Hejaz included the Muslim holy cities of Mecca and Medina, Hejaz was predominantly Muslim. 94.1% of the population of Hejaz adhered to Sunni Islam, the dominant branch that supported the Umayyad Caliphate over Muhammad's son-in-law and cousin Ali after the death of Muhammad in 632. The other 5.9% were animist, predominantly from the families of Mecca and Medina that fought against Muhammad during his war to take over Arabia for Islam.

Politics
Mecca was an absolute monarchy ruled by the Royal Faction, which had a 68% majority. 19% were reactionary and 13% were liberals, but the royal faction ruled Mecca for its entire existance.